React Context API vs Redux: Which One Should You Use?

When managing state in a React application, two common approaches are React Context API and Redux. Both help share data between components, but they serve different purposes. So, which one should you use? Let's break it down in simple terms.

What is React Context API?

React Context API is a built-in feature of React that allows you to share state (data) globally across components without having to pass props manually at every level. It is best suited for lightweight state management like themes, authentication, and UI state.

How Context API Works:

Think of Context API as a canteen in an office:

• The canteen menu is the Context, which holds the food (data).
• The canteen manager (Provider) supplies food (data) to employees (components).
• Employees (components) just need to ask the canteen manager for food instead of bringing their own (prop drilling).

Steps to Use Context API:

1. Create a Context (global state storage).
2. Wrap your app with a Provider (to supply the state to components).
3. Use the Context in components via useContext.

Example of Context API:

import React, { createContext, useState, useContext } from "react";

// 1. Create Context
const ThemeContext = createContext(null);

// 2. Create Provider Component
export const ThemeProvider = ({ children }) => {
  const [theme, setTheme] = useState("light");
  return (
    <ThemeContext.Provider value={{ theme, setTheme }}>
      {children}
    </ThemeContext.Provider>
  );
};

// 3. Create a custom hook for easy access
export const useTheme = () => useContext(ThemeContext);

Using Context in a Component:

import { useTheme } from "./ThemeProvider";

const ThemeSwitcher = () => {
  const { theme, setTheme } = useTheme();
  return (
    <button onClick={() => setTheme(theme === "light" ? "dark" : "light")}>
      Switch to {theme === "light" ? "Dark" : "Light"} Mode
    </button>
  );
};

When to Use Context API? ✅

• Small to medium-sized apps
• UI state management (themes, auth, language settings)
• When you want to avoid unnecessary complexity

What is Redux?

Redux is like a corporate food distribution system that tracks every meal ordered, delivered, and eaten. It is a centralized store that allows large applications to manage state in a predictable manner.

How Redux Works:

• Store: Holds the global state.
• Actions: Define what changes should happen.
• Reducers: Specify how state changes based on actions.
• Dispatch: Executes an action to modify the store.

Best For:

✔ Large applications with complex state
✔ Managing API calls, caching, and large datasets
✔ Global state shared across deeply nested components
✔ Debugging (Redux DevTools provides time-travel debugging)

Example of Redux Setup:

import { createStore } from "redux";

// Define an action type
const TOGGLE_THEME = "TOGGLE_THEME";

// Action creator
const toggleTheme = () => ({ type: TOGGLE_THEME });

// Reducer function
const themeReducer = (state = { theme: "light" }, action) => {
  switch (action.type) {
    case TOGGLE_THEME:
      return { ...state, theme: state.theme === "light" ? "dark" : "light" };
    default:
      return state;
  }
};

// Create a Redux store
const store = createStore(themeReducer);

To use this in a component:

import { useDispatch, useSelector } from "react-redux";
const dispatch = useDispatch();
const theme = useSelector((state) => state.theme);
<button onClick={() => dispatch(toggleTheme())}>Toggle Theme</button>

Context API vs Redux: Key Differences

When to Use Redux? ✅

• Large applications with complex data flows
• When multiple parts of the app need to update shared state
• If you need time-travel debugging (tracking state changes over time)
• When handling heavy API calls and data normalization

So, Which One Should You Use? 🤔

👉 Use Context API if your state is simple and limited to a few components.
👉 Use Redux if you have a large app that requires predictable and structured state management.

If you're just managing theme, auth, or UI-related states, React Context API is enough. But if you're building a large-scale e-commerce, finance, or enterprise application, Redux is the better choice.

What are you using in your projects? Let me know in the comments! 🚀